Chapter 3: She's Always Been Regina to Me

She opened the door, and stepped inside but didn't get very far before hearing Emma's cheery voice. The blonde sounded surprised and elated to see her.

"Regina, you made it! Here, we'll make room for you!" Emma got up and pulled a nearby chair towards the booth where her parents and Neal, Henry, and Hook sat. She approached but motioned for Emma to stop.

"No, no, that's fine. I won't stay. There's something I need to tell you, and then I'll go."

"Is everything all right? C'mon, we can talk in the back." She turned but Regina caught her by the elbow.

"Actually Emma, what I need to say, I can say in front of everyone here. Henry already knows, and it will be easier on you if your parents and Hook hear this from me." Regina met concerned looks from Snow and Charming, a scowl from Hook, and Henry's reassuring brown eyes.

Emma tried to dismiss the seriousness coming from her friend. "Regina, what's going on?"

Regina slowly let it out a breath. She searched and found Henry's eyes, and he nodded, offering his blessing and encouragement silently. She loved him for that.

"Regina, please. What is it?"

"Emma, you told me last night you didn't feel as if you had a choice, and frankly, a lot of that is due to me. Most of your life was set in motion by what I did, and I am very sorry for that. But that's not the case anymore. Your life is your own, and you can decide how you live it. And with whom." She glanced at Hook, and tried not to sneer. She failed.

"You get to write your own story now. And I want you to be happy. I want this as much as my own happiness."

"I know that, Regina. It's what we want for each other. It's what we've always wanted."

"I know Emma, but what you don't know is that I want to be happy with you."

"Regina, you can't just barge in here and say that to Emma!" Hook slid across the booth and tried to get up.

"I can, and I just did, pirate!" Regina stared him back into the booth.

"Queen, or no queen, I'll…"

"Killian, stop it." Emma stepped between the two, making sure they didn't get any closer.

"Regina, what are you saying? What does this mean?"

Without hesitating, Regina continued. This was her moment, and she wasn't about to squander it. "Emma, I'm saying that I'm in love with you. I have felt this way for a long time – maybe since Neverland, maybe since Pan's curse when I sent you and Henry away. Maybe even from the very beginning, but I was too scared to do or say anything. First I was afraid of you breaking the curse. Then I was afraid of you taking Henry away. And then I was afraid of losing you – the one person who understood me, defended me, saw me as more than just the Evil Queen."

Emma shook her head in disbelief. "What about Robin? Was that all a lie?"

"No, that wasn't a lie. Robin was a good man, and I truly loved him. We should have been together in another time and place, but I squandered that. The time we spent together was a gift, but he wasn't my true love. I knew that, but you were with Hook, and I wasn't about to complicate things for you."

Hook spoke up again. "So why now, Regina? Need to ruin Emma's happy ending?"

"Killian, please just shut up," Emma implored.

Regina ignored the pirate's outburst, and stepped closer, taking Emma's hands in her own.

"Emma, you know why I'm doing this now. I don't think I'm alone here, but you have a choice. I wanted you to know that. You also need to know that will honor the choice you make because I do love you – more than you'll ever know." With a final glance at Snow, Charming and Henry, Regina turned and walked away.

Emma began to sway and lose her balance as she watched Regina walk away. She leaned on a nearby chair, as both David and Henry reached over to help stay on her feet. She met Henry's eyes.

"You knew? You knew how she felt?"

Henry nodded. "I did, Ma. I've always known, but we only talked about it this morning. She's always been afraid of losing you."

Snow approached Emma, and turned her around to meet her daughter's eyes. "Honey, it wasn't just Henry. We've always known. It was just never our place to say anything. This was always Regina's choice, and we had to respect that."

Hook scoffed loudly behind them. "Well, it's a bloody bad choice for the Queen. She may have Emma lost for good now."

Emma held her mother's gaze for a few seconds, then nodded and offered her a crooked smile. "Then you probably know how this is going to go, right?"

"I do know, honey." She pulled her in close, and kissed her on the cheek. Emma then turned to face Hook.

"Actually Killian…it wasn't a bad choice at all. Regina's not alone in how she feels. She was just braver than I was by admitting it."

He reached out for her, but she easily stepped away. "Swan, what are you saying?"

"I'm sorry Killian, but I can't do this anymore. You know things haven't been right between us. This is one of the reasons."

"But she's the Evil Queen!"

"No, she's not." Emma quickly grabbed her jacket, and shouted as she ran past them, "She's always been Regina to me, and I love her."